Leave

[vic mcclymont]

Looking through discharge books I left the Vaal on the 8th of December 1971.
After a couple of months my dad said to me you still employed, me keep paying me.
Got a phone call to do relief work on a Bowater ship somewhere outside of London, did a week back home.
Eventually got the call join the Clan Ranald on the 22nd of the fourth 1971, so n all not a bad leave.
Considering I did mine trips on the Vaal with ten days off between voyages.
Oh for the old days.
Vic

[j.sabourn]

Hi Vic, will always remember my first trip, all my life had been centred around that, it was make or break.after a nearly 6 month trip we retuned to Purfleet on the Thames with sugar from Oz. The old man must have taken pity on me or maybe he wanted rid ,don’t know , but said you can go home unofficially but come back immediately you get the telegram. I got home for two nights and 2.5 days. On arriving on front doorstep and my old man opening the door , the first thing he said was Well ! Have you had enough. ?. If he had kept his mouth shut I would have been quite pliable to considering working with him, which was all he wanted. So I said No it’s great life. The ship moved round the coast to Cardiff to load coal for South American , so my train. Journey from Newcastle used to take over 12 hours in those days. I remember in the old type carriage with me was an RAF national service man, his biggest topic of conversation was that at his airbase they had a ghurka regiment close by and they had a government brothel supplied and his base didn’t. However we were bound for 25 De Mayo so was one up on him. Cheers JS

[happy daze john in oz]

Coming home on leave and mum would say, 'hello son home gain. when you going back'.
Real welcoming message.
Or my sister who would comment on my drunken state if having had to travel by rain from Southampton, we had to subsidize the bar to make sure it kept going.

[Ivan Cloherty]

#3 Think all mums said that, probably just a natural reaction, or just wondering how many times she had to wash the sheets

[Red Lead Ted]

#2 John, I found being the good looking Adonis i was slim and golden hair with a tan, My favourite pass time on leave, Was sharing my D.N.A. With the opposite sex...………….. Never short of takers

[j.sabourn]

Thought you were going to say DA there. Didn’t have the velvet collar on your jacket to go with did you ? Cheers JS
Sounds like you didn’t need viagra for your sunburn .it doesn’t cure it , but keeps the sheets off ones legs.
JS

[Ivan Cloherty]

#5 Like you Terry I was blond, tanned, perhaps not quite an Adonis, but I also got the girls DNA, but in my case it was a look which said 'Do Not Approach'

[Keith Tindell]

Dis she have a white T shirt on with a blue cross on the front Ian, in which case i also met her, kt

[happy daze john in oz]

There were a few in Southampton who had met quite a lot of the lads over the years.
Some were very nice, some were very good, and the rest just there for what you could give them!!

[Doc Vernon]

Always liked the amount of leave we got with the UCL Ships, on the Mail Run had two Weeks after every Voyage (Paid as well) from Southampton to Durban and Back. ( 6 Week round trip) Unless you wanted to work by when the Ship was back in Southampton, i did that quite a few times,more Money in the Skyrocket!

On the Round Africa Run, we got between 3 and 4 Weeks again Paid ,depending on the Trip as at times some of them had delays for one thing or the other,so could take from 2 days to a Week extra at Sea. ( A normal round africa though would be an 8 week trip) From KG5 via the Suez , the East Coast of Africa and up the West Coast Atlantic, back to KG5) and vice versa on next Voyage The older ones like the Dunnottar ,Braemar had a few Breakdowns along the way. But it all added to our Money,so i myself anyway did not care that much,enjoyed it all. And again one could work by for any period of your leave,but while in London i only did that once,as i so loved London i could not resist taking as much time as i could on Shore!
Cheers